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January 2, 2009
90 to watch in ‘09!
From The Brooklyn Paper's list of "90 people, places and things to watch in ’09:
55. Rich Kessler: This longtime Park Sloper discovered what he calls “The Brooklyn Mirador” — a view of the Empire State Building perfectly framed inside the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ arch in Grand Army Plaza. The view could be lost if Atlantic Yards ever gets built, and Kessler is fighting to restore Olmsted’s original design scene for the plaza around the arch.
36. Marilyn Gelber: The head of the Independence Community Foundation spearheaded this year’s “Give Where You Live Campaign,” an effort to keep Brooklynites’ charitable donations in the borough last year. And she’s still an outspoken voice against Atlantic Yards.
8. Atlantic Yards: So far, court cases, economic turmoil and his own ineptitude has stalled Bruce Ratner’s Atlantic Yards project for five years — and in 2009, two more cases could drastically alter the project once and for all. A decision is expected sometime in January on a lawsuit over the state’s weak environmental review. And early this year, Brooklyn appellate judges will hear a case that challenges the constitutionality of the state’s use of eminent domain. In financing news, Ratner’s $177-million bridge loan is due in February, but sources say the developer is trying to refinance the money in the meantime.
Posted by lumi at January 2, 2009 4:27 AM